18 November 2011: St. Cloud State forward Ben Hanowski (10) celebrates his goal during the St. Cloud State Huskies 4-3 victory over the Minnesota Golden Gophers at the National Hockey Center. (Courtesy photo)

This is it for Ben Hanowski. He will play his last bit of hockey for St. Cloud State. The Huskies’ senior captain from Little Falls has one or two games left, depending on what happens in the Frozen Four semifinal against Quinnipiac on Thursday, April 11, in Pittsburgh.

If the Huskies beat top-ranked Quinnipiac, Hanowski will play in the national championship game against the winner of the other semifinal between Yale and Massachusetts-Lowell. After that, Hanowski will consider his options, which include a professional hockey career.

Drafted by Pittsburgh, his NHL rights were dealt to the Calgary Flames in the trade that sent Jarome Iginla to the Penguins. Known as a scorer in high school — he set the Minnesota high school record with 405 career points (196 goals, 209 assists) — Hanowski’s all-around game helped lift St. Cloud State to a share of the MacNaughton Cup with the University of Minnesota. (The MacNaughton Cup goes to the WCHA regular-season champions.)

Hanowski has taken a team-leading 131 shots and has the second-most goals on the team with 17 and the second-most power play goals with five. His 31 points (17 goals, 14 assists) are tied for fifth in scoring for the Huskies.

I talked to Hanowski about what’s ahead.

BS: Do you like your chances of winning the national title?

BH: You’re darn right I like our chances. At this stage of the game, if you’re not believing in yourself or your teammates, you shouldn’t go out there. All four teams are great, but I wouldn’t want to be on any other team but ours.

BS: How important is it to be a key member of the Huskies’ first Frozen Four team?

BH: I think it adds a little sweetener to it. Any time you make a Frozen Four, it’s going to be a special time. To be part of the first team, it’ll always be that little cherry on top. When you come to the rink 10 years from now or years later, you can tell your family you were part of history and with a group of guys who were moving the program in a new direction and new heights.

BS: What do you know about Quinnipiac?

BH: They’ve been one of the best teams all year. We’re going to have to play our best game to have a chance. It’s going to be a war.

BS: Does making the Frozen Four take you out of the Gophers’ shadow, or have you already done that?

BH: Minnesota is a great program. They have a ton of tradition. They’ve won a lot of championships. Obviously, they’ve been around a lot longer. Since I’ve been here, we’ve done pretty well against them. I’ve never really looked at being in their shadow.

BS: Why did you pick St. Cloud State? Was Minnesota an option?

BH: I was talking to (Gophers) coach (Don) Lucia when I was getting recruited. One of the reasons I picked St. Cloud is, I developed a relationship with the coaching staff. I wanted to go somewhere where I was extremely excited to go and they were extremely excited in me joining their program. St. Cloud State was a big fan of mine early on.

BS: Was it difficult to become less of a goal scorer than you were in high school?

BH: I knew it was a big jump. To go from what I went from, Class A, to the WCHA, the best college hockey conference in the nation, was a huge step. I had to go through some bumps and bruises. I knew there would be some rocky parts to it.

BS: Was it exciting to be part of the Iginla trade?

BH: I still don’t think it’s sunk in. It’s been a couple of weeks now. It’s kind of been a whirlwind. Once the season is over, I’ll look back and assess it. It’s pretty cool to be a part of the trade for a future hall of famer. It was a unique situation and a day I’ll always remember.

BS: Will you join the Flames right after the Frozen Four?

BH: I don’t know. I’m trying to focus on the present and take it day by day. This is my last shot, and I don’t want to be focusing on the wrong things.

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